Global Issues
“The Path of Change”
What is the role of test scores in driving improvement in the education system?
One of the most widely pursued goals in philanthropy is the “improvement of K-12 education.” In the current issue (Spring 2004) of SSIR, talk show host Michael Krasny brings together two experts from different fields, Tom Vander Ark, executive director for education at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (and a former school superintendent) and Jerry Porras, a professor emeritus of organizational behavior and change at the Stanford GSB, to discuss this complex topic. A thread running through the conversation is the role of test scores in driving the improvement process. If not test scores, then what? What do you think?
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COMMENTS
BY Renee
ON February 9, 2005 04:31 PM
The two most critical elements of change needed in K-12 education are alignment and fidelity to best practice.
Alignment in the “supply chain” sense of the word, where action is taken to synchronize all the elements of the system. Fidelity to best practice in learning, leading, purchasing, designing facilitiies, communications, and every other aspect of the K-12 system.
For example, we currently have good quality academic content standards. Unfortunately, the textbooks are not well-aligned with the grade-level standards. The state assessment program does not give us enough actionable information about student performance to those standards. We have no efficient systems for ensuring that the instruction is using what we know about how students learn best and even if we did, we are confounded by the darndest things. Purchasing departments that are concerned solely with cost, not effect on learning and teaching. Multi-track year-round schedules for struggling learners. Every-three-months classroom rotation schedules that prevent teachers from having pets, classroom libraries, and software collections for children lacking background knowledge and life experiences that support academic pursuits.
These scenarios and yet some teachers are able to get sustained improvement in student achievement and, more amazingly, our students continue to volunteer their time, attention, and effort every day. We owe them more. At a minimum alignment and fidelity to best practice.
BY Ann Lehman
ON January 17, 2006 12:55 AM
I found the “A Failure of Philanthropy” article interesting but the timing could not be worse. Showing Congress how much money they are losing at this point, when they are constantly looking for new revenue, would give them incentives to cut back on tax ideductions for donors but would not result in new gains for nonprofits who address poverty…..as is evident by Mr. Riech’s conclusion, “Congress could give additional tax advantages for programs redressing poverty. In 2001, President Bush urged Congress to adopt such a measure—a targeted tax credit to individuals who make donations to organizations that spend 75 percent of their budget on direct services for
the very poor. (Bush also suggested, unfortunately, taking money from TANF to offset the cost of the tax credit.).”
In addition, the biggest subsidsy is going to churches and that is not about to change with this Congress.